IZU, JAPAN (AP) — Italy broke its own world record in beating Denmark to win the gold medal in men’s team pursuit at the Tokyo Olympics yesterday, rallying over the final half of the race to top the world’s most dominant team over the past year.
The squad of Simone Consonni, Filippo Ganna, Francesco Lamon and Jonathan Milan overcame a nearly half-second deficit over the final five laps of the 16-lap race.
They stopped the clock in 3:42.032 to edge the world champion Danes, who were just behind in 3:42.203, in a dramatic final at the Izu Velodrome. Australia, the silver medalist in Rio, took the bronze.
The Aussies were in a tight race with New Zealand before a touch of wheels sent one of the Kiwi riders to the ground and effectively eliminated them from contention.
The men’s team pursuit has been engulfed in controversy ever since the Danes stepped on the track for qualifying.
After setting an Olympic record with their ride, the British joined several other teams in lodging a protest over kinesiology tape that Denmark wore on their shins and aerodynamic vests under their jerseys.
The tape in theory would disrupt air flow and give them an advantage while the Brits claimed the vest was not publicly available.
